Will electric cars have an impact on the grid?

In recent years, electric vehicles have become very popular. According to the International Energy Agency, sales of electric vehicles worldwide have doubled from 2011 to 2012. In the United States, statistics from the Electric Drive Transportation Association show that sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles in the United States have doubled from 2012 to 2013 and are expected to increase by 30% in 2014. From 2011 to 2013, the proportion of sales of electric-powered automobiles (including plug-in and hybrid) rose from 2.3% to 3.8%, and experienced a doubling of positive realities.

However, if so many electric cars are connected to the power grid, what potential impact will it have on the grid? The current grid has been described by the public as "the aging Nicholas & dot; Tesla and Thomas & dot; Edison can recognize the accessories."

In the United States, the most popular all-electric vehicle is the Tesla S. In 2014, the company issued a total of 35,000 S-type electric vehicles. Tesla’s management also expects that by the end of 2015, the company’s annual production of electric vehicles will reach 100,000 units, far exceeding current figures.

According to Tesla, it costs 4,800 kWh per driver to drive 15,000 miles per year. If the average household per household pays US$0.12 per kilowatt-hour (about 0.74 yuan), the cost of electricity for a year is 576 US dollars (about 3542 yuan). Compared with gas-powered vehicles, the latter will cost US$1,700 (approximately RMB10,455) a year. Therefore, this is quite cost-effective if you don't mind the $ 70,000 (about 430,000 yuan) purchase of a Tesla S-type electric car.

But what are the potential impacts of 4800 kWh of electricity? According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, in 2012, the average power consumption per household was more than 10,800 kWh. Therefore, with electric vehicles, the electricity consumption will increase by 44% on the previous basis.

To put it this way, the 44% of the electricity is not enough to make the grid unsustainable, but the problem is that in the afternoon or after work, the electric vehicle users charge together and cause peak power. How to solve this problem is for further study.